The DioField Chronicle, the first official details of the new work by Square Enix
The DioField Chronicle
Among the various positive news that we can certainly underline when talking about The DioField Chronicle, one imperative stands out: it is evident how Square-Enix has returned to making medium-budget products that, inexorably, turn into AAA for the niches of enthusiasts. After Octopath Traveler and Triangle Strategy, Square seems to have regained self-esteem and the desire to caress those little groups of pro-Japanese nostalgic progressives, too quickly and erroneously branded as retro-gamers.Several recent Square-Enix productions are to all intents and purposes, steps forward in their respective genres, but they draw heavily from the role-playing titans of the 90s, improving them and tinging them with enormous ambition.
The combination, also in this case, is perfect: humility of expression joins the desire to fill with pride those who for years have been looking for weighty Japanese strategists who were not called Fire Emblem.
The first details of The DioField Chronicle seem to be right there, in that intersection favorable of extremely well-finished graphics and sound and a story with not super original assumptions, but that seems solid and well packaged.
Japanese real-time strategy
The DioField Chronicle Thanks to the recent information and trailers shared by the Japanese publisher, we discover with interest some background and characteristics of the protagonists, geo-political geography, gameplay and general the train of sensations that The DioField Chronicle tries to convey with its ambition almost of other times. If you have seen the trailer, two elements immediately stand out: the first is the game system, called RTTB, acronym for Real Time Tactical Battle, or a form of character strategy but in real time, with the necessary pauses to address the team; the second is the possibility of managing a company of characters active on the battlefield, alive, dynamic, each with their own peculiarities. These seem like two trivial things, the reality is that for Japan we are faced with a sort of playful avant-garde: so used to grids and stops between shifts, the idea of creating a continuous flow of actions in which to see the heroes physically move on the the field is electrifying.The game maps must be explored in depth in terms of size, level design, enemy design and collectibles, but what we have seen seems to put on the plate a good density of strategic action and intersections between the skills of the characters, attentive to the cones Sight, Backshots, and Area Skills. We have rarely seen such a focus on Japanese role-playing geometry as in The DioField Chronicle: Square-Enix seems to offer a large-bodied S-JRPG, but also rich in gameplay innovation and well packaged.
Geo -politics and characters
The DioField Chronicle What is on the pitch is a clash between factions: Empire and Alliance, maybe a little cliché, but that's okay, they have been clashing for dominance on Rowetale's continent for some time. The problem is that in this somewhat fantasy steampunk universe, Jade is needed, a magical material necessary for modern magic, and where can it be in abundance if not on the small island that lives its days peaceful? The kingdom of Alletain, on the island of DioField, is therefore called to answer for what will happen, aware of the intentions of both large sides to obtain the jade and win the war. If we want, the assumptions are very similar to Valkyria Chronicles, in which two factions swoop down on little Gaul in search of Ragnite, but we are convinced this is just a small appetizer. Also because the soundtrack is Ramin Djawadi, composer of Game of Thrones, therefore impossible to expect a linear and banal story.From what we have seen so far, there are four types of units available and are the classic ones: soldier, knight, sniper and magician, both offensive and healing. Nothing takes away from our heads that this is just the beginning of the tree of growth and that everything explodes in a tasty evolution of classes and skills, also because in this round Square has well thought of bringing back the summons, thanks to the Magilumic Orbs . The characters, also thanks to the information on the site, seem absolutely deep, with solid backgrounds and all the desire to tell the players, also thanks to a character design by Taiki and Kamikokuryo (Lord of Vermillion and Final Fantasy XII) that shines, giving a almost ethereal charm to every face. The ingredients are therefore all there, except the localization: we Europeans The DioField Chronicle will have to play it in English, French or German (strangely this time no Spanish), but maybe maybe that's okay, this kind of stories should be enjoyed in the most relevant way possible . On the platforms side, on the other hand, it comes out practically everywhere and if this, for the writer, is never desirable, it seems a product suitable for excellent conversions.
Square-Enixa has always been able to do strategists: thanks to a good cast of professionals behind it, the list of great ideas to support The DioField Chronicle is long and galvanizing. A rather fluid combat system, a beautiful setting, a soundtrack that promises sparks, characterized characters that will accompany us in an increasing gameplay. At this point, the only unknowns are the difficulty of the game, which we hope will be calibrated upwards to force the player to go into details and the depth of the story, which on balance starts from premises perhaps a little already seen. For the rest, expectations are rising for the new Square-Enix strategic IP.
